Nuclear was the second source of electricity in 2024 but is doomed to closure due to the Government’s rejection and lack of guarantees from the PP

The Nuclear energy was the second main source of electricity generation in Spain in 2024, only surpassed by wind energy. Last year, he contributed to a 19.57% to the electrical mix and was confirmed as the most stable technology, capable of producing at full power in 83% of hours of the year, compared to wind and photovoltaic, dependent on the wind and the sun, and which in no case exceeded 2,000 hours. Although, with these figures, Nuclear Forum assures that this technology is “a fundamental pillar for the electrical system”, to which it provides “strength and stability”, the sector is seen doomed to gradual closure from 2027due to the refusal of the current Government to modify the closing calendar that was signed in 2019 since it does not see that other parties, and in particular the PP as the main government alternative, do not offer either sufficient guarantees that they would meet the requirements of the owners of nuclear power plants reduce your tax burden, which leads them to disburse between 900 and one billion a year and which is a sine qua non condition to continue.

Nuclear Forum, the association that brings together the owners of the power plants, the large electricity companies, has once again demanded this Wednesday a reduction of tax pressure on nuclear through very different taxes -from generation to IBI-, in addition to the new and increased ‘Enresa rate’which are being appealed before the Supreme Court.

Currently, nuclear pays on the order of 28 euros per megawatt hour of production, which together with other taxes reach the 60 eurosin addition to the ‘Enresa tax’ for the management of nuclear waste. Nuclear Forum insists on its claim for a lower tax burden as condition that it is worthwhile for the owners of nuclear power plants to continue with the activity beyond the agreed closure, which will begin in 2027 with the first nucleus of Almaraz and will conclude in 2035 with the closure of Cofrentes and Trillo.

The third vice president and minister for the Ecological Transition, Sara Aagesenreiterated this Wednesday that the Government has no intention of modifying a closing schedule which the electricity companies also signed in 2019, at a time when, according to what the sector points out, it was seen as a lesser evil compared to the alternative proposed by the coalition Government, in which Podemos was then and which wanted an immediate closure.

Years later, and in the midst of the “wave” in favor of nuclear power in the EU and around the world since the war in Ukraine underlined the importance of energy autonomy, Nuclear Forum insists that the Government should reconsider and abandon its blackout plans, although it also assumes that at the moment there are no signs that something like this is going to happen. “To think that everyone is wrong except us…”, lamented the president of Foro Nuclear, Ignacio Araluce. “Being alone in the world is a bit sad“he added about the decision in other countries to stop closure plans or even build new plants.

The nuclear sector is facing closure, starting with Almarazwhich today, they say, “is going to close”, as the starting point of a chain that will close all the others and without giving rise to the hypothesis that the Government wants “sacrifice” the Extremaduran plant to decide later what will happen to the others.

According to the calendar, the two Almaraz centers will close in 2027 and 2028 and until then they could change many things, including the Government. However, despite the public commitment made the PP for keeping the plants open, the sector does not see enough guarantees so that, if they came to power, the popular people would commit not only to that, but also to the condition that the electricity companies set to maintain the nuclear generation business, a reduction of taxes that Nuclear Forum considers “unfair”, which reach between 900 billion a year and that other technologies do not have to deal with.

“Disproportionate” tax burden

“The continuity of the operation of the Spanish nuclear power plants will have to be inexorably linked to the reduction of the disproportionate tax burden they bearwhich has increased by more than 70% in the last five years, bringing it to economically sustainable levels,” Araluce reiterated, in an informative meeting in which he took stock of 2024, a year in which nuclear energy was once again key piece of electricity generation.

With no clues on how to convince the current Government or have guarantees from other parties that could succeed it, the nuclear sector appeal to “common sense” for the role of nuclear energy in producing electricity in a clean way, because does not emit greenhouse gasesand stablebecause it does not depend on the sun or the wind like photovoltaics or wind. After the years of rejection of nuclear plants, they also put on the table that, currently, those most convinced of this technology are those who live near the plants, in the face of the conflict generated by renewable deployment.

“Is It is difficult to understand that in Spain they want to do without one of the sources of electricity production that avoids the most emissions,” Araluce stressed shortly after Aagesen out “very clear” during his speech at the 15th edition of the Spain Investors Day forum when he recalled that there is a calendar for the power plant blackout between 2027 and 2035 that was “accepted” by the owner companies and Enresa.

19.57% of electricity generation in 2024

Last year, nuclear energy contributed 19.57% to the Spanish electricity mix and was the second main source of electricity generation, second only to wind energywhich represented 22.8% of the total. The second major renewable energy, photovoltaicwas responsible for 16.72% of the electricity and, in fourth place, was gas, because the combined cycles generated 13.22% and cogeneration, 6.15%.

In terms of efficiencynuclear was placed in first place because its 19.57% of net electricity production was possible only with 5.44% of installed power which represents the total Spanish nuclear park. On the contrary, wind generated 22.89% with an installed power almost five times greater, 24.2%. Something similar happened with photovoltaics, where the installed power -23.89%- was higher than the electricity generated, 16.72% of the total.

Thus, the nuclear company registered 7,314 hours of full production, 83% of the hours of the year, which were 1,922 in the case of wind -depending on whether there is wind- and 1,417 in the case of photovoltaic, depending on whether it is daytime and there is sufficient radiation.

Plants stopped for electricity at zero euros

Despite these figures, Araluce has classified 2024 as a “strange” year because the zero electricity prices In the spring they took two plants to shut down for a cumulative month and a half, which explains why for the first time their contribution to the energy mix remained below the traditional 20%. The first reason had to do with the taxes you pay this technology.